Talk of Champions League football has been music to Keith Lamb's ears.

Boro's new signings have all admitted that they believe the club and the squad has the potential to compete at the highest level and the chief-executive is delighted to hear that kind of ambition.

Far from pouring cold waters on such claims, which come just a few weeks after Steve McClaren's men finished a modest 11th in the Premiership, Lamb welcomed the belief that the likes of Hasselbaink, Viduka and Reiziger have shown in their new employer.

After all, the experienced trio are Champions League veterans to a man, so they have the credentials to assess Boro's potential.

"Those players who talk about Champions League football wouldn't be here if they thought they couldn't achieve it," said Lamb.

"If we've got players with that sort of ambition, then it's fantastic.

"One thing is for certain, if it happened, it wouldn't frighten us."

Boro surprised the rest of the Premiership by the rapidity of their transfer dealings this summer.

Inside the space of four days, three top drawer players were unveiled to the national media.

A beaming chief-executive greeted the throng on each occasion.

He started by saying "Welcome to the unveiling of another Middlesbrough signing."

And finished by claiming "I'll probably see you all down here again tomorrow!"

He was only half joking!

The main beneficiary from Boro's swift transfer market dealings was Steve McClaren.

The last thing the gaffer needed was a repeat of last year's late arrivals.

The season was underway when Gaizka Mendieta, Danny Mills and Bolo Zenden signed and, by then, the team was in the middle of an horrendous start to the campaign.

Lamb said: "It was our intention to try to settle our squad early this year and give them every opportunity to bed in, and that's what we've done.

"The squad is fixed and they can concentrate on preparations for next season."

"We have competed with the best (in the past), what we have lacked is consistency and hopefully those players we have now will help overcome that inconsistency."

All of Boro's summer buys want to win honours and that came over loud and clear when talks took place prior to the actual signings.

Speaking about the first major signing of the summer, Reiziger, Lamb said: "It's fair to say that Michael's ambitious and that came across when we spoke with him for the first time.

"Michael still wants to achieve things in football, particularly in the Premier League, he wants to win trophies and we have told him how ambitious Middlesbrough are.

"Our ambition and his ambition suit each other, and that's one of the reasons he's here. He's not coming here for an easy time, he's coming here to compete at the highest level and to win trophies."

It was a similar story when it came to convincing Viduka and Hasselbaink that Boro's a club that's going places.

Lamb said: "Mark was very keen to come to Middlesbrough because of our ambition, and once Steve McClaren got the chance to speak to Mark directly, Steve was then convinced that Mark was certainly the striker he wanted."

And regarding Hasselbaink, he added: "It's good business - it is Jimmy the player we wanted, the cost is secondary - I am sure he will be a big asset to the club."